Footloose (1984) Paramount/Drama-Musical RT: 107 minutes Rated PG (language, violence, reckless behavior, sexual references, drug and alcohol use by teens) Director: Herbert Ross Screenplay: Dean Pitchford Music: Becky Shargo (supervisor) Cinematography: Ric Waite Release date: February 17, 1984 (US) Cast: Kevin Bacon, Lori Singer, John Lithgow, Diane Wiest, Christopher Penn, Sarah Jessica Parker, John Laughlin, Elizabeth Gorcey, Frances Lee McCain, Jim Youngs, Douglas Dirkson. Box Office: $80M (US)
Rating: *** ½
If you grew up in the 80s, chances are you’ve seen the teen musical-drama Footloose. It was to Generation X was High School Musical and its sequels are to Generation Z. It became an anthem for fun-loving teens who just wanted their MTV. The soundtrack was a best seller with songs now heard on oldies stations. I dare say there are more than a few middle-agers out there that still want to kick off their Sunday shoes when Kenny Loggins belts out the number one hit theme song.
Directed by Herbert Ross (The Goodbye Girl), Footloose stars Kevin Bacon (Diner) as Ren McCormack, a Chicago teen who moves with his mother (McCain, Gremlins) to the small rural town of Bomont located in the conservative Midwest. Dancing and rock music have been outlawed in Bomont at the behest of fire-and-brimstone preacher Reverend Moore (Lithgow, The World According to Garp) in response to a horrible car accident that claimed the lives of several teens including his own son a few years earlier. He blames it on booze and rock music.
Naturally, Ren sticks out like a sore thumb in Bomont. He dresses like David Bowie and plays his music at top volume as he drives around town. He’s a rebel with a cause however. He’s determined to do something about the ridiculous ban. In the meantime, he becomes involved with Moore’s rebellious daughter Ariel (Singer of TV’s Fame) much to the wrath of her jealous abusive boyfriend Chuck (Youngs, Youngblood). Not wanting to be known as the town reverend’s daughter, she engages in reckless behavior like straddling two speeding cars while a semi bears down on them.
Ren’s attitude earns him a bad reputation around town. Some are out to discredit him. A student, in collaboration with a teacher, tries to plant drugs on him. He gets kicked off the school gymnastics team due to “budgetary reasons”. His uncle constantly berates him for not fitting in. His only ally besides Ariel is Willard (Penn, The Wild Life), a good ol’ boy with no sense of rhythm.
Ren gets the idea to hold a senior prom, but has to get the idea past the town council first. Reverend Moore sits on the council of uptight, conservative types who want to keep their town 100% sin-free. Bear in mind we’re talking about a town where residents burn books they feel are unsuitable for their children. By way of illustrating their narrow-minded mentality, let me describe an early scene where Ren praises the Kurt Vonnegut novel Slaughterhouse Five as a classic. He’s told that it’s not a classic in Bomont. Somebody else goes on to say that Tom Sawyer is a classic. Wait a minute, let me make sure I understand. A book that promotes racism and ignorance is okay, but a satirical novel about WWII isn’t? What message are these people trying to send to their children? Their behavior borders on Nazism. This is what happens when church and state are allowed to mix.
Iconic though it may be, Footloose is far from perfect. It has plot holes big enough to drive a tractor through. Answer me this. How is it in a town where dancing is illegal, the kids dance like pros when the music comes on? Where did they learn their moves? In pre-Internet 1984, they couldn’t look up videos on YouTube. Presuming Bomont doesn’t have cable access, there’s no MTV. Moore and the local police keep a tight rein on things. Where did they learn to breakdance? It doesn’t make sense. Not that the law against dancing and music makes sense either.
Footloose really comes to life when Bacon shows off his dance moves. In the vernacular of 80s teens, it’s totally awesome! In once amazing scene, Ren blows off steam after an angry confrontation with his uncle by dancing wildly (replete with gymnastics) to “Never” in a warehouse. The choreography in this scene is first-rate stuff. Footloose has a killer soundtrack that also includes Bonnie Tyler’s “Holding Out for a Hero” played during a game of chicken between two tractors. The finale looks like a Broadway number with the town’s teens dancing away to the title song.
Footloose is the movie that made Bacon a star and fashion icon. After it came out, a lot of teen boys were sporting spiky hair and skinny neckties. As far as performance goes, he’s quite good as a teen rebel leading a charge against uptight adults. Singer is terrific as Ariel, the kind of girl every boy teen would love to date. That is, if they can keep up with her. She’s spirited, strong-minded and gutsy. It doesn’t matter to her that she’s the daughter of the town reverend. She’s still going to do what she wants without giving a second thought to what her father thinks. At one point, she tells him inside the church that she’s not a virgin. LOL! Moore looked like he was about to burst a blood vessel. That brings me to Lithgow who makes a great nemesis to the free-thinking Ren. He’s a sanctimonious sort who can’t see past his own selfish motivations until it’s almost too late. He plays the role convincingly.
UH OH! I just found another plot hole. Moore doesn’t want his daughter to see Ren because he’s a bad influence yet he’s okay with a first-class creep like Chuck. All Ren wants is permission to hold a prom, a rite of passage for generations of graduating high schoolers. They’re entitled to it after 13 years of mandatory attendance. Chuck, on the other hand, is an asshole. He drives like a maniac, smokes pot before operating heavy farm equipment and beats up Ariel after she breaks up with him. I find it hard to swallow that Moore approves of this guy. As the town’s self-appointed spiritual leader, he seems to know what’s going on with the local teen population. How does he NOT know what kind of creep his daughter is dating?
Such matters are the things you won’t want to mull over while watching Footloose. In fact, it’s better if you don’t. Focus instead on Ren’s efforts to win over the uptight town council and show his classmates a good time. Sure, the outcome is predictable as all get out. Does it matter? Does anybody really go to see a movie like Footloose expecting surprise plot twists or an intelligent plot? That’s an emphatic NO! I mean, you know that Moore will eventually change his views and end his crusade against fun. This isn’t the kind of movie that begs deep analysis. It’s just a fun, empty-headed teen movie with cool music and great dancing. A few scenes play like music videos, but this is a musical of the MTV generation. It’s not the kind your grandparents forced you to watch on Sunday afternoons. If it has a message, it’s that teens should be allowed to express themselves by dancing their butts off. I ask you, is there anything wrong with that? Again, it’s an emphatic NO!
NOTE TO READER: Don’t bother with the 2011 remake. IT SUCKS!
